Flexible pipe-joint.



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FLEXIBLE PIPE JOINT. yM'PLICTI'ON FILED SEPT-23, '6912. REIIEWED AUG- I9| I9I5- Patented May 23, 1916.

' ina/ieee.

' iran WALTER C. WHITE OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, ASSGNOR TO INTERNATIONAL COUPLERS COMPANY, OF LOS ANGELES, 'CALFOIE/Nfx, A GORER'ATON 0F CALI- FORNIA.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application led September 23, 1812, Serial No. 721,736. Renewed August 19, 1915. Serial No. 46,349.

To all whom' concern Be itknown ,that I, WALTER C. WHITE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Flexible Pipe- Joints, of which the following is a specification. j

This invention relates to flexible joints which are designed to supplant rubber hose now used in fluid pressure systems, and the principal bject is to provide an absolutely fluid tight, flexible, metallic joint capable of being assembled without disconnecting its members from the connecting pipes.

It is also an object to provide a ball and socket joint of the above character with an annular packing groovel on the ball to feed the packing toward the beveled periphery of the groove and in positive engagement with the bearing surface.

lt is a further object tolprovide the ball of the joint with two heini-spherical sections having a suitable flexible packing interposed between the sections whereby the pressure will bear on a movable end passing the packing to the bearing surfaces together with means for gaining access to the said packing Without uncoupling the oints.

in the drawings accompanying this specilication and forming therewith the application for Letters Patent Figure 1 is an elevation of the improved joint, a portion of the device being broken away and shown in central longitudinal section. Fig. 2 is a cross section on the line 2 2 of Fig. l, the

l packing not being shown.

feed toward the bearing' surfaces, access tol which may be obtained without uncoupling the joint, and the joint may be uncoupled without disconnecting the members from the connected pipe line.

More specifically in the drawings 5 rep-- rcsents the body portion of the ball member of the joint provided with a threadedbore to receive a metallic pipe of the pipe line to which it is desired to apply a flexible joint. Suitable wrench faces@ are provided to secure the member to the adjacent pipe, and projecting from the opposite end, of the meniber is the rigid portion 7 of the spherical, head of the ball joint. The radius of this ball is, as shown, preferably of the diameter' of the body portion 5 and at a point which is just below the center, the distance corresponding to about one-half the desired thickness of the packing, the member is faced oil.' at S in the plane parallel to the equatorial plane of the ball and at right angles to the bore, leaving the annular flange 9 of such,

length as to form a Sleeve support and hold in positive relation the movable hemispherical portion l0 of the ball well as the packing. At the point il on the surface S of the body member a bevel outward and toward the body 5 is made, the function of which will be described hereafter.

As before stated, the movable heniispheri cal section l0 of the ball is of such configuration as to complete the spherical form when the packing;- is introduced intermediate of j the two sections of the ball, vthis section being provided with a bore at right angles to its equational plane which i'its over the sleeve. 9 and forms slight slidable contact there with. This bore practically converts the section .l0 into an annular ring, the bore therein. being curved or sloped outward toward the peripheral surface of the section as indicated at 12, so that the passage of the pressure medium will not be materially iiiterrupted when the position of the component members are changed and form an angular passage, and a greater arca will be exposed to the pressure and assists in compressing the packing interposed.

rIlle packing 13 is preferably composed of' the usual composition including fiber, graphite and other uuctuous components that will provide a flexible and elastic medium interposed between the sections, and will eifectively lubrioate the bearing surfaces with which it comes in contact, and feed toward these surfaces to complete and insure a tight joint.

The socket member 14 of the joint is provided with the wrench faces 15 and a screw threaded bore adapted to receive the other end of the pipe line it is desired to flexibly connect, this bore vcommunicating with the socket chamber 17 which is accurately machined to form a tight joint with the component members of the spherical head of the ball member. The flanged walls 18 of the socket are carried slightly beyondtheequatorial plane of the device to a joint where the internal diameter will not exceed the greatest diameter of any of the metallic portions of the spherical head, the external periphery of these walls being threaded from their edge inwardly 'to the annular shoulder 19. Engaging with the threaded periphery is the threaded annular ring 2O which is also machined to accurately fit the spherical head where its internal faces form contact therewith, these bearing surfaces being of such area to securely hold thehead in the socket when the ring is screwed to its seat against the annular' shoulder 19, the joint formed in the bearing surfaces bein accurately fitted.

The threaded anges 0% the Walls 18 and the ring 2O extend on either side of the' equatorial plane and at one point on their periphery a bore is threaded in this plane socket member.

used it can now be introduced when the through both of the flanges and their threads, this bore being threaded to receive thev screw 22 provided with. the hexagon head 23. This screw is preferably machined on its inner end to form an accurate surface to the inner surface of the socket and provides means for securely locking 'the component elements of the socket members and thereby lock the head securely in the joint and also in its removal provides access to the packing ring so that the packing, where a pulverized form is used can be introduced, or a liquid introduced to assist action of any other type of packing.

As can. be readily seen in the operation of the joint, the two members can vbe threaded onto the terminal ends of a pipe line, the two members brought together and the spherical head introduced into the socket after the annular ring has been slipped over the head, and the ring threaded onto the If pulverized packing is opening for the screw 22 registers, or liq- 4 uid may`be introduced .to swell and lubricate other types of packing previously appliedin the form of a solid ring. When pressure is appliedto the line including the joint the same will be exerted on the exposed area of the section 10 pressing the increasing the width ofthe packing bearing on the smooth surface of the socket. A portion of the socket adjacent to bore may be cut as is shown, to reduce the amount of machining and surfacing required to receive the bearing surfaces of the ball.

What I claim is:

1. A flexible pipe joint, comprising a ball member formed of a pair of hemispherical sections adapted to slide in relation to each other, having registering bores, one section having a sleeve concentric with its bore engaging in the registering concentric bore in the other section, a packing interposed between said sections and extending to the periphery of said ball, and a socket to receive said ball and engage with said packing.

2. A flexible ball joint, comprising a ball member formed of a plurality of sections having a central bore, one of said sections forming a hemispherical head, a sleeve on the equatorial face of said hemispherical head and formed concentric with its bore, a substantially hemispherical section having a bore slidably engaging said sleeve, a packing interposed between said sections and forming therewith a spherical bearing surface, and a socket having a spherical bearing surface to engage and embrace said ball member.

3. A flexible ball joint, comprising a ball member formed of a pluralityof' sections having a central bore one of said sections formedA as a hemispherical head with an annular bevel on its equatorial plane, a sleeve extending from the plane of said head con- 'centric with the bore, the second hemispherical section with its bore engaging said sleeve, a packing interposed between said sections, and filling the beveled annular groove formed by the bevel, a socket member having a bore and a heinispherical recess connected therewith and a threaded peripheny, and an annular threaded ringto securesaid spherical head in said socket.'

4. A flexible ball joint, comprising a ball member formed of a pair of sections each having a polar boreand an equatorial face, one of said sections formed as a hemispherical head with an annular bevel on the pe'- riphery of its equatorial face, a sleeve extending from the face of said head section concentric with its bore, the second of said sections being hemispherical, its bore enetA the beveled annular groove formed intermediate the faces 'and the bevel, a Socket member having e, bore and a hemspherieel recess connected therewith, also having a threaded periphery with L bore there through, an annular' ring having a bore therethrough registering with the here in the threaded periphery of said socket mem-` heri and. e closure for seid registered bores,

whereby the ring is looked anni entra-nce to w said packing is provided.

In Witness that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto subscribed my name this 7th day of September, 1912.

WALTER C. WHITE.

Witnesses:

RoLLrN KERNS, W. P. KEENE. 

